What a game Game 4 turned out to be for the Edmonton Oilers. Not for the faint of heart by any means, but with a flair for the dramatics, the Oilers defeated the Los Angeles Kings 4–3 in overtime last night after trailing 3–1 entering the third period.
In consecutive games that in all but name have been must-win, the Oilers have delivered, and evened the series at two games apiece. If they continue to win on home ice, the Oilers just need to pull off one win at Los Angeles, which given the Kings’ home record this year is far easier than winning two in their rink.
There’s a lot of heroes in this comeback win, so let’s get to them.
There’s now a goaltending controversy
Neither Stuart Skinner or Calvin Pickard, through three games, were stealing games for the Oilers, but each of them had only one goal against that you could consider “saveable.” They were what their season stats suggested them to be: slightly below average.
Pickard might have just taken a stranglehold on the starting job with his work tonight. The first goal by Trevor Moore, which beat him five-hole, was one you’d like him to have but otherwise he helped ensure the after 40 minutes deficit wasn’t any bigger than 3–1. He did all of this while getting minimal help from the offence in those first two periods of action.
38 saves on 41 shots is exactly what this team has been starved for, after the Kings scored 16 goals over the first three games. The Oilers will need at least one more stellar start like this if they’re going to win the series in the end.
The defence still has warts but got the job done
Before we get to the guy who got First Star honours for this game, a shout-out to some of those who helped keep the Kings from scoring more than three goals for the first time all series.
Brett Kulak’s play right away impressed this observer. Kulak may be the best pure defender on the Oilers so far this series and it’s not particularly close. Stats-wise, Kulak is leading the Oilers defence in multiple key categories (as shown below), including on-ice expected goals percentage at 58.5%. In the first period of Game 4 alone, there were two similar plays, on the first one, he knew to activate on the cycle, and on the other, he knew to drop back into coverage. The man has so far played in two Stanley Cup Final this decade, and if this year ends up being his third, he’ll have earned every bit of it and then some.
Jake Walman and John Klingberg were also good in this game, though both of them had some dicier moments with turnovers here and there, particularly Klingberg in the third period, but their will to get the puck to the other end of the ice was solid and paid off.
Evan Bouchard is officially an enigma. He once again committed a brutal turnover that would lead to a goal against (that being the 3–1 goal) but then came alive in the third period, scoring two goals (one of which Kings defenceman Drew Doughty admittedly aided). He will get a lucrative contract extension for sure, and to borrow a quote from former NHL GM Lou Lamoriello, it could be for “too long and too much money” given how many mistakes Bouchard makes, but if these are the rewards we get for having Bouchard in moments like these, it may well be worthwhile.
Oilers offence once again gets it done late
The Kings had the answer for the Oilers offence in the first two periods. Corey Perry—sorry, Scorey Perry—on the power play with some nifty puck handling was the Oilers’ only solution to Darcy Kuemper, but otherwise they had trouble even entering the Los Angeles zone. Leon Draisaitl in particular appeared to definitely be playing at a lower standard than regularseason Rocket Richard Trophy-winning Leon Draisaitl.
But we learned in 2022 that, when Draisaitl is playing through injury in the playoffs, he becomes an assist machine. Like clockwork, Draisaitl notched key assists on all three goals scored in regulation, then finished the job himself with the loose puck in overtime.
The “Comeback Oilers” as TNT announcer Steve Mears proclaimed them, would do well to stop needing rallies like this to win games, but they don’t ask you how you win 16 playoff games, they just ask if you did in the first place. This is the third time already this series the Oilers have scored a game-tying goal in the final 10 minutes of regulation, and Bouchard’s second tally was their third goal of the series with the goalie pulled.
Bonus note: This was the first Oilers OT winner in a home playoff game since David Desharnais, set up by none other than Draisaitl, did it in Game 5 against the San Jose Sharks in 2017. The Oilers won the next game on the road to close out that series.
What’s next for the Oilers
Game 5 is slated for Tuesday night in Los Angeles, and there will now be a Game 6 later in the week at Rogers Place. Whether the Oilers will need to win to stay alive, or have a chance to finish the Kings off on home ice for the second year in a row (and third time in four years) in Game 6 remains to be seen.
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